UFC 294: Khamzat Chimaev vs. Paulo Costa Preview, Odds, Predictions, Picks

One of the most expected battles in the UFC, between Khamzat Chimaev and Paulo Costa, is officially confirmed for the UFC 294, which is set for October 21. This will be a middleweight battle, at 185 pounds, between two trash-talkers who already have a history of beef between themselves in the past. Chimaev and Costa have been calling out one another, going back and forth for quite a while, so the organization used that to arrange one of the battles that could go on to be memorable.

Here is also a preview of the fight for the UFC lightweight title between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira.

Preview

Khamzat Chimaev (12-0, -360) is a strong favorite over Costa. We didn’t expect to see such short odds on the Russian, because he didn’t have such tough tests in the middleweight division as Costa, a title challenger at one point. 

Chimaev is coming off a super-fast victory over Kevin Holland at the UFC 279, where he should have fought Nate Diaz, but his problems with weight have caused the entire main card to be mixed. Instead, we’ve seen Nate and Tony Ferguson battling.

Chimaev holds victories over Gerald Meerschaert, Li Jingliang, Gilbert Burns, and Holland. He holds the quickest turnaround span between two wins, ten days, and three victories, 66 days. His wrestling is impeccable, and the Chechen might be the best wrestler in the entire organization. Khamzat’s long arms allow him to hurt the rivals from a distance and control the pace, while his cardiol needs to be mentioned as fantastic. 

Paulo Costa (14-2, +240) was more in the media headlines because of his behavior outside the octagon. He often calls out everyone in the UFC, including Dana White, who indicated that he won’t tolerate the Brazilian’s stupidity anymore. This could easily be one of the last fights for him. 

After an impressive 13-win run, Costa lost two bouts in a row, against Adesanya in a middleweight title battle and later on, Marvin Vettori, via unanimous decision. He came back in August last year to beat Luke Rockhold at the UFC 278 and hasn’t entered the octagon since. 

Costa is a massive and powerful fighter, on the borderline between the middleweight and the light heavyweight division. The power of his punches is enormous, and we’ve seen that in the past, with him winning 11 of his bouts via KO. He obliterated Uriah Hall and Johny Hendricks and had maybe the best bout in the history of the UFC vs. Yoel Romero.

Predictions

There is a noticeable difference in size here because Costa has at least 10 pounds more than Chimaev, who, on the other side, has a three-inch longer reach and is more mobile inside the octagon. We’ll see how he wrestles such a big guy, but in our personal opinion, once Khamzat drags Costa to the mat, the Brazilian has nothing to hope for, with all due respect. He didn’t encounter a guy like Chimaev before, who relentlessly works on the ground and performs like a machine, which could create problems for Costa’s cardio, who has been a bit shaky against Vettori and Rockhold. All those muscles are creating a problem as time goes by.

Pick: Chimaev wins